Archive of The New Paper article, “Shower Shocker” (7 June 2000)
Shower Shocker BY CHUA WEI YNG The New Paper Jun 7, 2000 The Vice-Principal of Thomson Secondary School was yesterday jailed three weeks for touching the penis of a youth in a public bathroom at Sentosa. Here are the different accounts as read in court. YOUTH SAYS SO big, so manly. Ng had allegedly complimented Ravi (not his real name) when both men were naked in the male toilets on Central Beach. Ravi, 23, had gone to Sentosa for a three-day camp with six friends. They arrived on Friday, Nov 6, 1998, and planned to stay until Sunday. At about 7am on Saturday morning, they went to Central Beach for a swim. After an hour, they came out and Ravi walked over to the male bathroom to wash up. The toilets were empty, so Ravi put his wet shorts on a nearby bench and went into a shower cubicle. The Shatec student had forgotten to carry an extra pair of shorts, so he had to wring out his wet pair. As he was drying off, he noticed a man at the other end of the showers. It was Vice-principal Ng Tiat Seng, 51, also naked. Ravi sensed that Ng was gazing at him. Then Ng allegedly complimented him on the size of his private parts. Ravi was shocked. But he continued towelling himself, so that he could leave quickly. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. As Ravi swivelled around, Ng touched Ravi’s penis for a second. Ravi pushed Ng’s hand away, and told him not to try anything funny. Again, Ng allegedly remarked about Ravi’s penis and asked him not to be shy. But seeing Ravi’s outraged face, Ng dressed quickly, grabbed his bag and rushed out of the bathroom. Ravi chased Ng and cornered him near the monorail station. He seized Ng’s bag from him to keep him from running away. Ng then allegedly offered Ravi $20 to $50 to keep the matter quiet. But Ravi got the attention of a group of teenagers nearby. He then shouted at Ng to tell them what he had done. Just then, it began raining very heavily. Ravi insisted that Ng go to the campsite – he wanted to take down Ng’s particulars. Ng refused, a struggle ensued and Ravi punched Ng on the forehead. Seeing Ng bleeding, Ravi felt sorry and returned the bag, from which Ng took his towel to stem the blood. Ng pleaded with him, and offered him $50 or $100 to drop the matter. Ravi pulled him back to the toilet area and finally reported the incident to the lifeguards. He accompanied Ng to the first aid station, and then made a police report. VICE-PRINCIPAL SAYS IT was Ravi (not his real name) who made the first move, vice-principal Ng Tiat Seng, 51, maintained. Ng had gone to Sentosa on Nov 7, 1998, to swim at Sijori Club. After sending his daughter to Tanah Merah MRT station at about 7 am that morning, Ng drove to World Trade Centre and took a shuttle bus to the resort. But the clubhouse was noisy so he headed for the beach instead. After walking for about 30 minutes, Ng felt sweaty and wanted a shower. It was about 8.30 am when Ng entered the toilets. The first thing Ng claims he saw was a naked Ravi towelling himself on the bench. Ravi spoke to him first, Ng claimed, talking about his camping trip. Ng ignored him and proceeded to bathe. While showering, Ng turned around to get soap from his bag on the bench. But Ng alleged that Ravi blocked his path, pointing to his own erection. Ng tried to ignore this. After showering and dressing, Ng claimed that as he walked away Ravi snatched away his bag. He thought Ravi wanted to rob him. To get his bag back, Ng said he offered Ravi $100. But in his initial statements, Ng had denied offering Ravi any money. Ravi didn’t take the cash. Here, Ng became confused and only remembered that Ravi had punched him on the forehead. He didn’t realise it was Ravi who escorted him to the First Aid room. He denied being a homosexual. PENALTY In court on June 6, Ng Tiat Seng was sentenced to three weeks’ jail for committing gross indecency. He will be appealing and is out on $10,000 bail. He could have been jailed for up to two years. PROSECUTION SAYS AT least three months’ jail for Ng. This was a serious offence committed in a public place, argued DPP Toh Han Li. “In cases where it is consensual and done in a private place, the minimum sentence is a few weeks,” he explained. But there was no consent in this case. DEFENCE SAYS JUST jail him for a day, Ng’s lawyer, Mr Yang Ing Loon, pleaded. “It’s not easy for a man of his status and reputation to find another job of equal status and salary. It is certain that his teaching career will come to an end,” Mr Yang said. Ng was suspended from his job in December 1998. THE JUDGE SAYS District Judge S Thyagarajan said before passing sentence: “I have considered his suspension, the possible disciplinary proceedings against him and the loss of his career.” Ng was acquitted of one charge of masturbation. But he was found guilty of committing gross indecency on his victim. ………………………………… Acknowledgements This article was first archived by Paranoid Android on SiGNeL: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/signel/message/800 Category:Archive of LGBT articles